New Way to Train Marines in AP

[Bill Huntington]

Another new thing. At least for me. In TC I did the marine training with a Cobra and civilian TLs like Arena and Casino. The Acinonyx is a better way to train marines in AP. You can train 8 at a time. You can hunt better targets. I've picked up 5 Hyperions, 4 Boas, 3 Zephyrus. Any M6 should be good pickings. I lessened the rep loss by taking them in pirate sectors when I could. When the 8 marines were 100 or close in Fighting, I picked up an Elephant and a Mammoth.

The Acy has Boarding Pods and Hammers but not Flails. I used Hammers some but find that the Ion Shard weapons work just fine for lowering the shields and keeping them lowered. The Hammers provided an alternate once when I needed one.

It's too bad you get the Acinonyx later with the AP plots. Maybe I'll do this plot earlier from now on.

In TC I trained the marines for multiple time periods after the marine is 100 in fighting. Now I train a few to 100 in Hacking, then to 100 in Mechanical. That's because I've got my eye on Terran targets ASAP. You need 100 in Mechanical to penetrate the Hull. If your priority is limiting damage during boarding, the Engineering should be your priority in training. There's a time penalty for doing multiple training periods, so I always choose the quick option.

Have pilots tried the big targets like M1 and M2 with the Acy? How about M7M?

[RAVEN.myst]

Have pilots tried the big targets like M1 and M2 with the Acy? How about M7M?

Yup - once the marines are strong enough at their fight skill, the 8 can be enough for such targets. I've captured the Aran several times using a "perfect eight" (all of them at 100% in all skills) launched from the Acinonyx. Because the boarding pods ensure simultaneous breaching, that offsets their numerical disadvantage on the first deck. This ship is superb for drive-by boarding ops, as it makes a great personal ship for those who like it, meaning that targets of opportunity can be snapped up as they are encountered.

Personally, if I intend to use marines seriously, then I start training them MUUUUUCH earlier - spacewalk boarding of TMs from as soon as I have an octet to throw around, and then I keep increasing their number, rotating them with some on active duty while the rest are in the classroom (but I guess this is obvious.) My strategy is to initially specialise each one in either mechanical or hacking AND engineering, with a roughly 2:1 ratio of mech to hack. I've been meaning to experiment with "spam-walk" boarding - emptying a full 40 out of a TP at a target to see how much that may improve the timing of the spacewalkers' hull breaching, but haven't had the chance yet - I have optimistic expectations. Of course, in terms of training that won't be highly efficient, as only those ones who make it onto the target will gain experience benefits, but since I plan on doing my usual of starting with TMs as targets, I will also be spam-recruiting, therefore many of them will be rather unskilled at first - and a few won't make it through basic training, no doubt...

[Timsup2nothin]

and a few won't make it through basic training, no doubt...

I'm not really sure of that. I usually take my free marines from the plot and add some quality before I start letting them practice, but in my current game I was on a tighter than usual budget. So I looked at my 70+ in everything squad leader, who had obviously made some officer very angry, and the six meatsacks who couldn't produce a 30 in anything between them and said "well, let's see what happens."

I added one guy to fill the gap. He had a fight rating of about forty and not much else going for him. First try out the gate they all got kicked off of a basic TM without getting through the hull. I considered handing out some cheap training, but gave them one more shot. They made it through the hull, managed to win the fight, and even though they shot just about every credit of value out of the target they did capture it, with no losses.

The gang of eight is now three missions to the good and all of them are still alive. I still haven't got a TM that was worth keeping...or selling, really, but they are all still alive and are even worth expending training on.

[RAVEN.myst]

Since I'll be looking at filling a TP's full-40, I expect to be drinking deeply from the shallow end of the recruiting gene-pool Thus, I'll probably end up with marines with a fight ranking of as low as 10, and in the event when the 9 that make it to the hull first all happen to be among the greenest, I expect some will be getting burials in space... The playthrough I have in mind will not even benefit from plot freebies, as it's going to be a fully pirate-themed one - this also means I'll be recruiting from pirate bases and the so-called "rehab clinics", where the quality of the stock is at its lowest... (I won't have access to certified marine training barracks or military outposts.) Well, easy come easy go...

Target TMs I consider as training dummies, and occasionally one or two for keeping - what makes them so great as an investment is also what makes them next to worthless as booty: they're just so cheap. I don't recall ever selling a captured TM for much more than 150k, and usually considerably less, unless it happens to have a jumpdrive or such - and in that case I treasure the JD in any case, as usually it means I'm playing a "capture-only" game, so availability is at "my precioussss" levels...

[Timsup2nothin]

Captured TMs make good fuel tanks.

[RAVEN.myst]

Captured TMs make good fuel tanks.

If only I could strap them onto my capital ships, to serve as external auxiliary tanks... (And, come to think of it, as a little additional improvised armour... unless the fuel is volatile, of course - then again, wouldn't that constitute the equivalent of "reactive armour"?)

[Timsup2nothin]

Captured TMs make good fuel tanks.

If only I could strap them onto my capital ships, to serve as external auxiliary tanks... (And, come to think of it, as a little additional improvised armour... unless the fuel is volatile, of course - then again, wouldn't that constitute the equivalent of "reactive armour"?)

On a serious note, refueling for capital ships is a pain in the seating apparatus. I had forgotten how much of a pain it is until I got this frigate to fly around in so early. Usually I have a serious fueling operation already set up and expanding it to cover capital ships is just an expansion. Now I'm still at the earliest stage of setting up the first fuel tank for my first CLS ship, and I jumped the Cerburus out of frickin' gas.

[RAVEN.myst]

I really miss X2's docking of TS ships at some capitals - that made perfect sense. A TL with docked and homebased freighters just... well, made sense (yes, repeating myself - what can I say?) The ability for any capital ship to carry a TS would allow for sensible reprovisioning. Have you considered getting a few freight drones for the job? I stock up on some of these before I get my first capital (which is usually a TL, otherwise a M7C or sometimes a straight-up M7.) With a capacity of 800 up to XL-class freight, they're great for refuelling, rearming, and even buying shields and weapons.

[Timsup2nothin]

I really miss X2's docking of TS ships at some capitals - that made perfect sense. A TL with docked and homebased freighters just... well, made sense (yes, repeating myself - what can I say?) The ability for any capital ship to carry a TS would allow for sensible reprovisioning. Have you considered getting a few freight drones for the job? I stock up on some of these before I get my first capital (which is usually a TL, otherwise a M7C or sometimes a straight-up M7.) With a capacity of 800 up to XL-class freight, they're great for refuelling, rearming, and even buying shields and weapons.

Nahhh. I've already started building my refueling system, even though making that a priority over serious trading cuts against my grain pretty hard. Until I get that enlarged I just need to keep a better eye on the gas gauge. The three military outposts in and near Sector 148 are being kept full, so I can always refuel manually as long as I can jump there.

[Thrake]

I really miss X2's docking of TS ships at some capitals - that made perfect sense. A TL with docked and homebased freighters just... well, made sense (yes, repeating myself - what can I say?) The ability for any capital ship to carry a TS would allow for sensible reprovisioning. Have you considered getting a few freight drones for the job? I stock up on some of these before I get my first capital (which is usually a TL, otherwise a M7C or sometimes a straight-up M7.) With a capacity of 800 up to XL-class freight, they're great for refuelling, rearming, and even buying shields and weapons.

I guess it's not a masterplan but the most convenient I found is to keep a caiman with JD just for the purpose, docked at one of my facility (so always fuel around) and make it jump whenever needed. Caiman because 3000 cargo allows to refuel most ships and 120 or so max speed makes it quick. Of course both capital and TS have teleporter, love that little thing

I used drones a while ago but I have to say that waiting for docking/undocking is pretty tedious and I experienced regular crash when docking.

I also saw that there are several refuel/resupply commands for ships, but when I tried that two AI ships didn't refuel one another, anybody knows how that works? Or is it just a missile command thing?

[RAVEN.myst]

@Tim: How about having a jump and transporter equipped CLS2 simply unloading to a manual limit to your recreational vehicle? And since you're already setting up a reservoir and all that, it would be a simple two-point route that could also include mosquitoes, fighter drones (if applicable), and whatever else you go through... Of course, it wouldn't surprise me if you're already aiming at something along those lines...


@Thrake: yes, keeping a freighter standing by and fully loaded is another way that I often use - to be honest, although I still always get me some of those freight drones, I very seldom use them, because they are flakey when it comes to docking back at the ship when in-sector, and there's only so many coffee/lunch/whiskey/whatever breaks I can take in one session

As for the refuel commands you mentioned, I'm not sure which ones you are referring to: if it's the ship's automatic refuelling in the command console in the jumpdrive section, then that takes place only when that ship docks at a station that offers ECs. Note a couple of quirks: if it docks at a station that neither produces ECs (or sells them as a product, such as a Hub/EqD/TPort etc) nor is the ship's homebase. auto-refuelling will not take place. Also, if the ship is homebased, all its automatic expenses get paid by its homebase, so if that station is broke, then nothing will happen.

If, however, you're thinking of the command provided by the Supply Command Software, then... well, then that's a whole other story (Yes, I know - not THE most helpful remark! It's just that I've used it on occasion, and to reasonably good effect, but not enough to remember the details off the top of my head. I do remember that it's quite easy to use, once you get used to it, and is handy for resupplying entire groups - so I was using it to refuel and rearm wings of M8s, for example.)

[Thrake]

As for the refuel commands you mentioned, I'm not sure which ones you are referring to: if it's the ship's automatic refuelling in the command console in the jumpdrive section, then that takes place only when that ship docks at a station that offers ECs. Note a couple of quirks: if it docks at a station that neither produces ECs (or sells them as a product, such as a Hub/EqD/TPort etc) nor is the ship's homebase. auto-refuelling will not take place. Also, if the ship is homebased, all its automatic expenses get paid by its homebase, so if that station is broke, then nothing will happen.

If, however, you're thinking of the command provided by the Supply Command Software, then... well, then that's a whole other story (Yes, I know - not THE most helpful remark! It's just that I've used it on occasion, and to reasonably good effect, but not enough to remember the details off the top of my head. I do remember that it's quite easy to use, once you get used to it, and is handy for resupplying entire groups - so I was using it to refuel and rearm wings of M8s, for example.)

Yeah, I was thinking of supply command software, I already use the other one extensively, there's not much that pisses me off more than having to refuel every time I switch ship or find out some AI ships thinking it's OK to fly through 20 systems (bonus points if it includes xenon system).

[Timsup2nothin]

@Tim: How about having a jump and transporter equipped CLS2 simply unloading to a manual limit to your recreational vehicle? And since you're already setting up a reservoir and all that, it would be a simple two-point route that could also include mosquitoes, fighter drones (if applicable), and whatever else you go through... Of course, it wouldn't surprise me if you're already aiming at something along those lines...

Yeah, that's the gist of my usual system. Current game situation I have two, yes, two jump capable pilots and they are both in large but slow ships that aren't ideal for refueling on the go.